The relevant portion of the statute governing administration of the census:
In 1989, the White House of Bush Sr. sparked outrage from Democrats when it proposed nominating Alan Heslop as director of the Census Bureau. Heslop was “a Republican reapportionment expert” according to the contemporary coverage in the Washington Post, and Democrats feared that he would politicize the count. Now Rahm Emanuel, former head of the DCCC — a job that would certainly qualify him as an expert on redistricting — is moving to make the head of the Census Bureau answer directly to him. It’s a pretty egregious attempt to politicize the statistical science behind the census as John Fund explained in the Journal, and it would seem to be a clear violation of the statue outlining the administrative hierarchy. The Secretary of Commerce is the only one authorized to give direct orders to the Director of the Census Bureau, and that Secretary will likely be a Republican. Democrats should consider it the cost of bipartisanship — and Republicans should demand that they are paid in full. Update: A reader adds:
